Evergreen State College reopens after threat information

​Evergreen State College in Olympia reopened Monday after reviewing new threat information received over the weekend.

The campus reopened at 3 p.m., and classes and activities will resume.

The college had announced it would be closed Monday and delivered the following message late Sunday evening:

The Evergreen State College's Olympia campus will be closed and on suspended operations Monday, June 5, while law enforcement officials review new external threat information received over the weekend.

"Suspended operations" means no classes on Monday, including evening. Evergreen staff will be present to provide campus services to resident students and ensure their safety. Law enforcement is active on campus at all hours.

A determination on when to fully re-open campus will be made as soon as possible.

"Even though we had planned to be back in class on Monday, it's important to give law enforcement an opportunity to evaluate their new information," said Sandra Kaiser, vice president for college relations at Evergreen.

"Public safety at Evergreen is our top priority," Sandra Kaiser, the college's vice president for college relations, said in a statement. "As we return to normal operations, local law enforcement remains extremely vigilant, and we will respond quickly if the situation changes."

The campus initially closed last Thursday after an unknown person made a threat of "campus violence" to Thurston County officials. The college's president, George Bridges, made the decision to close campus with advice from law enforcement.

Thurston County released a copy of the phone call. A male caller told a dispatcher: "I'm on my way to Evergreen University now with a .44 Magnum. I'm going to execute as many people on that campus as I can get a hold of. You have that? What's going on here? You communist, scumbag town? I'm going to murder as many people on that campus as I can. Just keep your eyes open you scumbag."

A spokesperson said there was no known connection to last week's race-based protests. Demonstrations held last Tuesday and Wednesday involved around 200 students.